Unexpected assault!!!

naufal90

Hi all. I recently bought a used bike from a private seller. Before buying, I have asked as many questions as I can to check whether the bike is stolen or etc. The guy who sold me the bike looked legit and even had the original purchase receipt of the bike. I felt more secure and safer, hence decided to take the plunge and bought the bike from him. The transaction went smooth and I got the receipt. Was happy that day especially after I sent the bike to have a brief inspection at 2 LBS, they both said the bike was a good purchase. I'm a perfectionist so not really happy with the scuffs and marks here and there but their words sort of neutralised my unhappiness.

After few rides, I was very satisfied and happy until today sthg unexpected happened to me. While I was towing my bike by the road side heading to my mate's house, a big woman assaulted me claiming that I stole her bf's bike. She blocked my way and kept scolding me for stealing the bike. She even asked me for the receipt (which obviously I don't bring with me) and insisted to know where I live. She also asked for my number. She was really furious and blackmailed me that if her bf ever see me cycling around next time, I will be in trouble as he is a pretty badass. I was quite scared now. To be precise, I started to question whether my bike is really stolen. But, I think the bike is not unique as in not the only one produces in the world as my bike is just stock (not self built from independently sourced parts) so they are a lot of exact bike like mine exist around London or perhaps the whole world. I really don't know what to do now.

If I ever found her again next time with her bf, perhaps her bf would beat me up? Or perhaps she is a scammer? Or perhaps her bf really had his bike stolen, but she misunderstood my bike as his? If we go into nego table, what if my bike proven to be stolen? Do I just give it away? I paid nearly £350 for it though! These sort of things keep circulating in my head. Any advise fellas??

Tom Butcher

Why not inform the police what happened and show them the receipt you have - save the number of the police station on your phone - get some kind of crime number (you did say she assaulted you). If either she or her bf confront you tell them you are happy to go to the police station or phone them up right there - as you will have a crime number they should be able to confirm you have been in and shown them a receipt. Don't give them your address whatever you do. I doubt you'll see her or her bf again though.

elderone

If your worried take the receipt to the police and have it checked out.If its nicked you will lose it but rightful owner will get it back.If you get the woman or her fella at you again,say you have receipt and will happily call the police there and then and that will sort it either way.
good luck.

mallorcajeff

or option C. Sell it and buy something else? If your not 100% happy with it maybe this is the excuse to your self to buy something else. I doubt your paths will cross again as said before but I know how it feels I have had crap like thats and I was 100% innocent but still ruins your day. If it is nicked you will loose everything though so think before you do that. If you find out it is stolen then selling it on "knowing" its stolen is an offence but sellign it when you dont know its stolen is not an offence. If it turns out to be (although dont know how you find that out and keep it) you can either swallow it and put it down to experience, or break it for parts and get what you can back (not very PC but if you have been stung could minimise the loss??

Personally I would try find out if its nicked and then if not keep it maybe keep a photocopy of the receipt in your wallet for a while incase you bump into Mrs twat but lets be honest how likely is that unless you like in a place like Bibley I very much doubt your paths will cross again.

naufal90

Thanks for the response. Perhaps I will go to the police station soon. It's very hard nowadays as even if you bought sthg 2nd hand with original receipt, there is still potential that the receipt is a fake one. What has happened to the world? Then, receipt will be worthless as everyone can easily claim they own certain thing by saying they have receipt. If let say (please don't!!!) that the bike is indeed stolen, do I just lose my money by buying a stolen bike??? That's not fair at all! Im also scared now to check whether my bike is stolen or not as the fact will decide whether I lose money or not. I paid for it with my hard earned money. And this is my first time having this problem buying 2nd hand item. Never thought this would happen tho! I never did bad things like stealing etc etc. I just hope god is on my behalf and protect me. Although the odd of seeing her again is small, I do go to my mate's house frequently. Maybe there's chance I'll meet her again oh no!!! What would you do to a random furious big lady who scolded and blackmailed you by the road side in front of everyone???? You can't do anythg! Lol

Careca

Does the receipt say where the bike was bought? It may have vat number or some sort of identifier if the shop name is not there. Contact the shop to authenticate the receipt. All bikes I have bought have come with decent information about the retailer.

naufal90

I will check back when I get back home. Now studying at my mate's house. I never properly inspected the receipt as the reason I want it is to have peace of mind that the bike really belongs to the seller I bought from. Also, it indirectly tells that the bike is properly taken care of as he has spent nearly £700 to buy it new. Basically, it's just for peace of mind, never really expected thing like this will happen. Will check it thoroughly later and probably will do a research background about the company he bought it from and give them a call maybe? I just want to listen to any story/experience that forumers here have which deal with things like this before. Perhaps any win win resolution?

ricky1980

on what basis did the lady (terrier) say the bike is hers? is the bike a standard bike? i.e. no upgrades from purchased new if so, how can this person be so sure.

If i was confronted in this situation i would recite some of the above - "I have the receipt and willing to sort this out at the station" threatening people physical harm is clearly not the right way especially if anyone with a brain cell wouldn't have nicked the bike in the area and be riding the same bike without changing bits and pieces on it.

it's like sh#tting on your own door step...purely stupid! I think the b#tch might be crazy!

Froomes Edgar

ricky1980 wrote:

anyone with a brain cell wouldn't have nicked the bike in the area and be riding the same bike without changing bits and pieces on it.

it's like sh#tting on your own door step...purely stupid! I think the b#tch might be crazy!

Yes, bike thieves are indeed well known for having extraordinary intelligence

diy

Unless you feel like reporting her assault to the police, I would do nothing.

The last thing you should do is sell the bike on if you are suspicious it may be stolen. You cannot sell something you do not own.

Did you give her your name/address? If you did, then I would report the assault.

Sorry but my mrs struggles to tell a mercedes from a bmw, if they are the same colour, so unless this lady is in to bikes, she may well have collared you because you bike had two wheels and handlebars.

Some basic facts:
Q what happens if its stolen - do I loose my bike and money?
A Yes, but you have a civil claim against the seller for breach of contract. Doesn't help if he is dishonest though.

Q How do I prove its mine?
A you have proof of purchase and a receipt for transfer of title. Its for someone else to prove its not valid.

Q What do I do if she stops me again?
A Call the police, if she threatens, detains, or assaults you.

Don't give your bike to anyone other than a policeman who can only properly seize it as potential evendence.

paul_mck

paint it a different colour. sorted.

if it was stolen, and that arse owned it, I wouldnt be giving it back to them!!!!

go a different route if it wasnt close to home and forget about it.

Pross

Sounds like she might have been trying to steal it herself by intimidating you into handing it over or getting your address so that they could pop round later and nick it. Either that or she is so thick she doesn't realise that one years model of a particular bike will be exactly the same as another. You should have offered to call the police there and then saying you would be happy to provide your details to them so they could check the receipt. If genuine I'm sure she would have accepted the offer.

iPete

If it is completely stock, the women was probably trying to take advantage that you had two bikes with you.

Look for security marking like bike register, you could even register it yourself for peace of mind. That way, if the frame number has been registered as stolen it'll flag up.

https://www.bikeregister.com/

Unless you live in a small town I wouldn't worry.

On_What

Why are you worried? Let's face it she was probably as high as a kite

cougie

You were towing the bike ? Why ?

If i read this right - shes seen you with 2 bikes and assumes that one is stolen. Its plausible i suppose.

I know my wife wouldnt be able to ID any of my bikes out in the street.

I'd just avoid going that way if you dont want to report her 'random angry woman' to the police.

Monty Dog

Did she physically "assault" you - in which case, you might want to report this to the police, even if they just have it on file. If there was any physical contact, she would at least be given a caution.

The risk is the bike may be stolen and reporting it may result in it confiscated as evidence and returned to the legal owner - you'd be left to seek recourse from the seller.

ricky1980

Froomes Edgar wrote:

Yes, bike thieves are indeed well known for having extraordinary intelligence

the point is they tend to flog them then riding the bike themselves

Bobbinogs

Why not get the local police to check the serial number against their database?

graeme_s-2

If the person who's claiming to be the previous owner doesn't have the serial number of the bike then they won't be able to prove it's their bike and the police won't be remotely interested.

diy

paul_mck wrote:

paint it a different colour. sorted.

not a good idea:
1. if its not stolen you've just devalued your bike
2. if it is stolen you open yourself up to allegations of receiving/handling stolen goods as the police would want to understand why an innocent person would do this. The correct owner can sue you for damages.

paul_mck

it wasnt a hugely serious proposal.

Its unlikely to be stolen tho, just some crackhead chick trying it on imo.

naufal90

Sorry if some of you misunderstood the story. Actually, I was heading to my mate's house to study together. But, yesterday we played football at noon around his house first. My house is in north London while my mate's house is in south London. So I took my bike to his house. Just one bike, not two. Then, after we finished playing, we head back to his home together. But they were walking cause the sports centre is just near to their house. So, i walked with them and towed the bike with me. While we're walking back, somehow a girl shouted to us and stopped us by the street. Then, the whole scenario started. I really love my bike so I don't want to lose it just like that though! Didn't give her address/name!!! Since she was very assertive, I gave her fake phone number! If she was a nice lady, perhaps I'm happy to discuss further by giving my real phone number. Really don't wanna see her or her bf again!

naufal90

iPete wrote:

If it is completely stock, the women was probably trying to take advantage that you had two bikes with you.

Look for security marking like bike register, you could even register it yourself for peace of mind. That way, if the frame number has been registered as stolen it'll flag up.

https://www.bikeregister.com/

Unless you live in a small town I wouldn't worry.

I have checked the website and it says no record is found as it has not been registered? So am I good to go? Since it has not been registered, can I just register it under my name just in case next time, things like this will happen again?

Careca

So do you have a genuine receipt?

flasher

You don't say what the bike is, I'm guessing that at £350 it's not going to be an exclusive brand, something along the lines of a Specalized, Giant etc. sold in their thousands, I really wouldn't worry about it.

charlie_potatoes

Shirley this is a Rule 5 situation?

naufal90

Oh forgot to mention again. I have thread introducing myself with my bike so forgot to mention again what bike. It's just specialized allez sport 2011. Nothing much special tho. Everythg is standard/stock apart from certain parts i bought from here or website to make up my bike. I have the receipt but I don't have time to go to police station to check its authenticity. Have exams until end of the month tho. Need to study and stay at home for now

naufal90

Charlie Potatoes wrote:

Shirley this is a Rule 5 situation?

What is this? Can you explain to me?

diy

The rules were created by a set of socially retarded cyclists (mostly arm chair cyclists) with nothing better to do than create an elitist set of rules designed to to create a geeky clique of like minded nerds, who can wear nerdy cycling gear and snigger at anyone who chooses to be different. Or its a blog intended to be funny.

Some of them are quite good advice, some are funny, some are an expression of a strange sexual fetish. In any case:

http://www.velominati.com/the-rules/
Rule 5 - MTFU

move on with your life.

Careca

naufal90 wrote:

Oh forgot to mention again. I have thread introducing myself with my bike so forgot to mention again what bike. It's just specialized allez sport 2011. Nothing much special tho. Everythg is standard/stock apart from certain parts i bought from here or website to make up my bike. I have the receipt but I don't have time to go to police station to check its authenticity. Have exams until end of the month tho. Need to study and stay at home for now

I doubt the Police will be able to prove if it's authentic or not as I'm guessing their crime lab will be pretty busy!

I would have thought your receipt, if genuine, would have things like the name of the shop/trader that sold the bike and their VAT number. All the receipts I have for my bikes, from different shops, carry this info.

If it is just a vague till receipt with none of this information then I'm guessing it will prove nothing!

TOM14S

If I were you I'd have stood my ground and said something like, If i were to steal a bike i'd hardly be dumb enough to ride it around the same area i stole it! and bikes aren't unique this is my bike, you can't just go accusing me for stealing a bike, what makes you think it's his... you crazy sod.
If I saw someone that i was 100% sure was on my bike i'd make sure i got to the bottom of it. if they they'd bought the bike i'd work with them to get details of the person who they bought it bike off and hopefully catch the ***. I doubt anyones mrs on here would know exactly what her blokes bike looked like.
If i were you I'd not worry. just ride, enjoy your bike, don't push it. she's just some crazy dum ***.